Day 1 - Juice Cleanse/Dextox

I've been intrigued by juice cleanses and detoxes for awhile now. When my friend, Betsy, who is launching her raw/vegan food business next month - Reboot Health & Wellness - mentioned she could design a 1.5 day cleanse for me, I decided to take the plunge. Below is the menu and what was sent to me by Betsy prior to starting the cleanse.

All of our juices start with organic fruits and vegetables that are cold

Day 1:
2 glasses of water with lemon
1 sweet greens smoothie (12oz. drink first -:strawberries/blueberries/banana/pineapple maca/hemp/chia/arugula/coconut water)
1 Rehydrating Flush (12 oz): watermelon/cucumber/strawberry/basil 1 Clean Green (12 oz): fennel/celery/cucumber/mint/lemon
2 Sweet Green Juices (24 oz): kale/romaine/cucumber/celery/apple/grapefruit/lemon/ginger (1 for lunch and 1 for dinner)
1 Red Zinger (12 oz): Orange/carrot/beet/ginger

Day 2:
2 glasses of water with lemon
1 2oz wheat grass shot (shoot with lemon wedge)
1 green lemonade 1 sweet greens smoothie 1 lg salad – soft mixed greens for digestion with zucchini hummus as dressing for lunch 

Here is my timestamped journal of yesterday - Day 1 of the cleanse/detox. 

5:30 am - Alarm for spin class went off, snoozed too long, decided to take evening class

6:30 am - Woke up a 2nd time, reset alarm for 7 am and tossed and turned for 30 minutes

6:55 am - got up 5 minutes before alarm, had first cup of room temperature lemon water

7:00 am - Shower, get dressed, and ready for day

7:15 am - Really wanting a cup of coffee, I resist

7:20 am - 2nd glass of lemon water

7:45 am - out the door with 12 oz smoothie in hand - it's delicious!

 12 oz - strawberries, blueberries, banana, pineapple, maca, hemp, chia, arugula, and coconut water

8:00 am - wishing I had coffee during my drive into work

8:20 am - walk into work with about 4 oz of smoothie left

8:35 am - Finish rest of smoothie

8:45-9:30 am - Complaining hardcore to co-workers that I really need coffee. Office mate Megan suggests black coffee. Message Betsy to complain. Take 2 Excedrin Migraine to stave off impending headache.

9:30 am - First bathroom trip

9:35 am - Betsy calls me and talks me off the ledge. Suggests green tea instead.

9:40 am - Feeling better after talking to Betsy, decide to hold off on a hot caffeinated beverage and make warm lemon water

10:23 am - Starting to feel hungry, make 2nd trip to the bathroom

10:30 am - Rehydrating Flush Juice - very refreshing and again delicious!

12 oz - watermelon, cucumber, strawberry, and basil

10:38 am - trying to drink slowly to savor, stomach grumbling

11:10 am - finished Rehydrating Juice 

11:48 am - feeling hungry, munching on some raw almond herb crackers made by Betsy

12:02 pm - trying to hold off on green cleanse juice for lunch until 1 pm

12:25 pm - 3rd bathroom trip 

12:35 pm - stomach physically rumbling 

1:02 pm - started Sweet Green Juice  and refilled 25 oz water bottle for 3rd time. 

12 oz - kale, romaine, cucumber, celery, apple, grapefruit, lemon, and ginger

1:52 pm - finished Sweet Green Juice - Was not a particular fan of this one because of the strong celery flavor of this one.

2:01 pm - 4th bathroom break

2:02 pm - I ask my co-worker (who is also juice fasting), "Can't we just go to Rand and get a green salad?"

2:58 pm - Real hunger is starting to set in.  Trying to wait until 4 pm to have 4th juice.

3:08 pm - Message from Betsy talking me off the ledge: "don't be hard on yourself -be kind today so you can purge" 

4:19 pm - drinking 4th juice - Clean Greens; hunger goes away

12 oz - fennel, celery, cucumber, mint, lemon

4:26 pm - realized I never had that cup of coffee I so badly wanted at 9:30 this morning! Win!

4:45 pm - bathroom again - lost count how many times I've peed today.

5:00 pm - ultimately decide to skip spin. I feel too weak to do such a strenuous workout. Decide to go with co-workers another co-worker's house to visit her and new baby instead. Still not feeling hungry.

7:45 pm - get home and realize I am STARVING. Immediately down the Red Zinger, my favorite so far. Still hungry, so I have my 2nd Sweet Green and last juice of the day. Still feeling hungry. Watch 2 episodes of 'Girls' and some 'Friday Night Lights'.

10 pm - Asleep

3 am - wide awake, starving. 

3:30 am - realize I'm not going back to sleep anytime soon and watch 3 more episodes of 'Friday Night Lights' until it's time to get for work. Have 0.5 a day left of the cleanse.

Check the blog later tonight for the last half-day of the cleanse and my thoughts on it.

Nashville Craft Beer Week - Wild Cow Beer Dinner

I often say, "I love food, I'm just trying not to love it as much as I used to." But as a true foodie at heart, I still love going out to eat to my favorite restaurants, and trying new ones.

When I found out March 18-24 was Craft Beer Week in Nashville, I knew I wanted to find at least one event to participate in. When Betsy invited me to a "Beer Dinner" at Wild Cow - the local vegetarian and vegan restaurant in Nashville - last Tuesday night, I immediately accepted and waited in anticipation for weeks - I was pumped to experience 5 courses each with their own beer pairing. I've frequently dined at Wild Cow for quick and healthy meals. While I'm not vegan or even vegetarian, I there are specialties I enjoy from the Wild Cow menu - including their chickpea salad (which I have tried to recreate at home) and "Prince Fielder" sandwich.

Craft beer and a 5 course vegan menu? Yes Please!

The featured brewery was Green Flash out of San Diego, CA. They had Bounty Bev, a local beer distributor, there discussing each beer selection in between each course.

Beer: Green Flash 'Hop Head Red'

Soup: Curried potato and turnip soup

I'm not a huge fan of IPAs, but this was a nice accompaniment to a spicy curry soup. This one had a nice malty start with a hoppy finish. Also, I realized this night that I enjoy a "hoppy" brewed beer in small doses (like our 6 oz pours).

Beer: Green Flash 'Palate Wrecker'

Salad: Mixed local greens with pistachios, dried peaches, dried mangoes, & caramelized red onions

 A high alcohol-by-volume beer coming in at 9.5%, this was another brew I didn't know if I would like because of it's "West Coast-inspired IPA" component. It complemented the salad nicely, which was semi-sweet with the dried fruit and caramelized onions.

Beer: Green Flash 'West Coast IPA'

Appetizer: Collard Green Wraps with cabbage, kohlrabi & green curry hummus

This was my favorite food - the collard wraps were so fresh and delicious. There was a  bit of a spice to the hummus, and the citrus flavors in this beer were perfect to cool down the spiciness.

Beer: Green Flash 'Rayon Vert'

Entree: Stuffed Acorn Squash with roasted sweet potatoes, carrots, spinach, pumpkin seeds, cranberries and orange zest.

This was my least favorite course. The Rayon Vert was anticipated to be my favorite beer, since it was read to be more balanced than the previous 3 ultra hoppy selections, but I don't know if it was just that I was ready for dessert and that Double Stout or what - I just wasn't feeling it.

The acorn squash dish was entirely too sweet for my tastes. As an entree, I was ready for something savory, especially after the sweetness in the salad and the upcoming dessert - I didn't really need more dried fruit in my life. The creme fraiche was the best part of this dish!

Beer: Green Flash 'Double Stout'

Dessert: Chocolate Stout Cake with Ganache Drape Beet Glaze & Smoked Paprika

Another one of my favorite courses, but who doesn't love dessert?! The cake was a bit dry for my tastes, but the beet glaze and chocolate ganache more than made up for it. I have dreams about that beet glaze (I. Love. Beets.) The portion was huge and could have easily fed 2 people. However, I ate the whole dang thing because the thought of leaving it on my plate was too sad!

The beer was overshadowed by the decadent cake, but I love a good stout so it ended the meal on a high note.

Overall, the dinner was really good. I left feeling full and satisfied, but since the dinner was packed with veggies and good-for-you grains, like quinoa, I certainly didn't feel "blah" from eating the meal. It was a perfect night spending time with friends.

Weigh in & Weekly Goals

Weight Last Week: 263.4

Weight this week: 261.2

2.2 pounds LOST this week

Lowest Weight Recorded: 232.2 on 4/22/12

68.2 pounds lost since June 2010


I fought this week for every ounce that I lost. When I did my menu plan for the week, I planned it loosely around the Carb Lover's kickstart plan.


This week I'm also going to do something I've been wanting to try to re-start my previous healthy living. I'm going to do a 36 hour juice fast to detox and kick start my metabolism. It is scheduled to start Tuesday morning and will end Wednesday lunch with a "super green salad". My friend Betsy, who is a raw and vegan chef and co-founder for Reboot Health and Wellness, designed the program for me. I'll definitely be posting to write how it goes.


As far as workouts, here's the plan this week:

Today: C210K (I was going to swim too, but I'm feeling pretty tired and sore, so I'm going to add the swim to Friday's workout)
Monday: Active Rest/Yoga
Tuesday: Spin
Wednesday: C210K and 5 miles on indoor bike
Thursday: Spin
Friday: W4D2 of C2K (approx. 2.25 miles) and 600 meter swim
Saturday: W4D3 of C210K (approx. 2.25 miles) 14-16 mile bike

It's a busy workout week to finish up the Ironman March Challenge. Let's get ready!

Ironman March Challenge - Week 3 Update

As a reminder, I committed to participate in Caitlin's (from Health Tipping Point) Ironman March Challenge where I will complete the Ironman distances in swimming, biking, and run/walking during the month of March.

You can check out the original Ironman March Challenge post and download the printable training plan on HTP.

So yesterday concluded Week 3. We have 10 days left (including today).

The goal again this week was to swim 872 meters, bike 25.3 miles, and run/walk 6 miles. Plus, I still needed to catch up on a lot of biking, let's see how I did.

March 15-21:
Friday: Rest
Saturday: 12 mile bike ride on the greenway near my house
Sunday: 1.75 mile run and 650 meter swim
Monday: Nothing - missed yoga due to a GMAT prep class went to
Tuesday: 10 miles in Spin
Wednesday: 2.25 mile walk/run as part of C210K
Thursday: Nothing - missed yoga because of a meeting that ran long at work and I was too lazy to go to the gym

So my weekly totals were 650 meters swimming, 22 miles biking, and 4 miles run/walking. Yikes I'm behind.

My week was a bit hectic. I had plans Mon-Wed nights and having that much on my social calendar just tends to throw me off. I was also REALLY sore from my weekend workouts and without my gentle/stretching yoga on Monday it was hard to motivate myself by Thursday to do yet another day of cardio. I know, excuses, excuses, but it is what it is. This next week should be MUCH better because I have NOTHING on my calendar in the evenings. I plan to focus, focus, focus.

10 days to do 1,962 meters of swimming, 73 miles of biking, and 9.56 miles of running!

Here's my plan for the rest of the month:

March 22-28
Friday:  1,000 meter swim
Saturday: 14-16 mile bike ride
Sunday: W3D3 of C210K (approx. 2.25 miles) and 600 meter swim
Monday: Yoga
Tuesday: 45 minute spin (10-12 miles)
Wednesday: W4D1 of C210K (approx. 2.75 miles) and 5 mile indoor bike
Thursday: 45 minute spin (10-12 miles)

March 29-31
Friday: W4D2 of C2K (approx. 2.25 miles) and 600 meter swim
Sat: W4D3 of C210K (approx. 2.25 miles) 14-16 mile bike
Sun: 45 min spin (10-12 miles) or bike

I realize my biking miles are VERY heavy in order to finish the Ironman distance. All I can do is try on that front. I'm confident I won't have any problems with the swimming or running (funny how biking is my weakest sport and the one I'm most behind on).

At least this challenge has kept me on task for triathlon training and really that's more important than being a few miles short of riding 112 miles in a month.

Woman lost 200 pounds, now miserable?

First, watch here: http://gma.yahoo.com/video/gma-woman-loses-200-pounds-080000296.html

This story immediately caught my attention on Good Morning America today. The headline was "Woman Loses 200 Pounds, Now Miserable" and told the story of Jen Larson, who had gastric bypass surgery at 308 pounds, and how after losing 200 pounds found herself miserable.

"What, the what?!" most people were probably thinking watching this story over their morning coffee. But I was intrigued by the headline and I was enthralled once the segment came on my TV. I stood there captivated, understanding all to well what Jen lamented about her significant amount of weight loss, feeling the anxiety come over me from how much I identified with exactly. what. she. said.

GMA Interviewer: Did you find yourself becoming more obsessed with your weight when you were thin?
Jen: Absolutely. You know, being thin didn't make me happy. I'm still looking in the mirror and I'm still hating what I see and how is this even possible?

Shut. The. Front. Door. This. is. me.

I often try to articulate how much more self-conscious I am about my body now that I've lost a significant amount of weight. I always feel uncomfortable when I mention it to friends, family, etc, so I don't do it very often. But the truth is, I NEVER looked in the mirror when I was heavier with the same HATE and DISGUST that I do now that I am smaller. Especially now that I'm up 25 pounds from my lowest weight. I am still 5-6 dress sizes SMALLER than my biggest, and yet I look in the mirror with disgust EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.

Another "Ah-ha" moment was when they interviewed Psychoanalyst, Bethany Marshall, "Obese people live with the fairytale or the illusion that if they lost the weight their lives would be better. But what happens is when they lose the buffer they feel people are scrutinizing them."




I never thought that weight loss was an automatic fix to all of life's problems, but the part where she talks about the buffer being lost is so true. When you carry around an extra 100 or 200 pounds, you feel like you have an invisibility cloak protecting you from the scrutiny of public eyes. Although this is ludicrous. I'm here to tell you I am more "noticed" at my current size than I ever was at 350+ pounds. People look you in the eye more often, hold open doors more often, make friendly conversation more often, and then there is the issue of extra attention from the opposite sex. These are all things I've had to figure out how to internalize and deal with and I'm still figuring it out.

I truly believe these are things hindering my weight loss. I've had to re-learn to live in new skin, so to speak, and I think my inability to do that at the moment is turning me back into the food addict I was at 355 pounds. I am regressing and spiraling out of control.

I don't want people to think that losing weight is a bad decision. It 150% was the best thing I've ever done for my life and gave me SO much more confidence and ability to live life with fewer worries. I am glad I am still fighting to continue until I am 100% the healthiest and strongest I can be because I know that is what's best for my quality of life. However, seeing this segment gave me a voice. It made me realize these feelings - every single one of them - are normal. Now that I have this realization in the back of my mind, I feel like I can approach this next chapter of the journey with clearer eyes and continue to fight the good fight.

What do you need to start Tri-ing? Not Much!

I started writing this as a comment in response to this Swim, Bike, Mom post. After typing, and typing, and typing I realized this was much better posted as a blog post rather than a comment.

I don't wholly agree with SBM's "wear one thing" & "don't put anything else on" rule. I completed my first sprint tri last year at 6'0" and 240 lbs, which makes me about an 18/20, and most women's triathlon clothing doesn't fit someone of my frame size. What to wear on race day was one of the biggest "mysteries" to figure out during my training.

I didn't want to spend $150+ on a triathlon suit when I wasn't sure if I would actually enjoy tri-ing. Especially when I would have to order specialty size or go to a men's cut. In fact, I didn't want to invest much money at all in triathlon gear until I realized I did in fact love it. So I ended up wearing my plain black Reebok one-piece swimming suit and a pair of Men's XXL compression shorts for the swim, and then pulling on a pair of mesh basketball shorts for the bike and run.

My advice to beginners (still being a beginner myself) is to NOT go out and buy a bunch of unnecessary gear. You DO NOT NEED a triathlon suit/kit to complete a sprint triathlon, unless you have an extra $100-$150 laying around and would just feel more comfortable doing this. I just don't want anyone using the expense of the sport as an excuse to not train and complete their first race when they really want to.

Here's what my "gear" consisted of during my triathlon training and race:

-One piece no-frills swim suit (with supportive straps and full-coverage)
-Pair of compression shorts
-Pair of old school Speedo goggles I previously had (I paid $5 on clearance for them years prior)
-Swim cap (purchased half way through my training)
-Pair of  mesh basketball shorts (pulled over compression shorts after the swim)
-Hand me down bike from the 90s - with proper safety tune up
-Water rack and water bottle on bike
-Helmet
-Properly fitted running shoes
-Sweat and moisture wicking socks
-Garmin 405 GPS enabled watch (this is not mandatory, I just happened to have been gifted one the Christmas before my first triathlon season)
-Hard work, determination, a training plan, and a commitment

Now your mileage may vary. I didn't find the need for padded bike shorts on my training rides and/or padded triathlon shorts for my race because I was only riding twice a week and not that far most days. I may buy a pair this year because I'm planning on spending A LOT of time on the bike and I can already tell it may affect...ahem...me.

Also, I am small chested, so I didn't feel uncomfortable riding and biking in just my bathing suit with shorts pulled over. If you are a better endowed woman than I am, you could easily wear a sports bra under your swim suit.

My point is, you can get by with less if you need to. You do not need clip-in pedals, a fancy bike, or lots of fancy gear for a sprint tri.

I would love hear other people's comments about their experience on completing their first tri and sharing their best tips and practices!

Weigh in & Weekly Goals

Weight Last Week: 258.6

Weight this week: 263.4

4.8 pounds GAINED this week

Lowest Weight Recorded: 232.2 on 4/22/12

66 pounds lost since June 2010

I feel ridiculous with this weigh in. I went from 256 earlier in the week (after a 2 lb gain last week), to this all in a matter of two nights out.

It started Friday with sharing bottles of wine and dinner out. But that was nothing compared to Saturday's mess. I can't even list what was consumed because you wouldn't believe it anyway.

This weigh in was Sunday morning, I'm sure I'm up even more today because I ate a whole 12" pizza yesterday. Yep. The pants that were just getting back to fitting normal again last week are too tight today. I feel bloated and angry.

I did get two workouts in that accumulated to 12 miles on the bike, 1.75 miles running, and 650 meters in the pool.

Here's the workout plan for the week:

Today: Rest/Yoga
Tues: Spin
Weds: Run
Thurs: Spin
Fri: Swim
Sat: Bike
Sun: Run/Swim

Although I have 3 dinners out already planned for this week, I have healthy lunches made for the week. My focus is on portion control and drinking enough water.

It's all I can do to not lose my shit this week.